MEDIA APPEARANCE: Guest on the "Kicking the Seat" YouTube channel talking 1998's "Mulan"

The present social distancing and near complete shutdown of the mainstream cinema calendar has led to many postponed spring tentpoles. One of those was Disney’s hotly anticipated and latest re-imagining project of Mulan from director Niki Caro. All of us, critic and public alike, will get to see that movie someday. For now, it’s a great time to revisit the 1998 animated original. On the week we would have watched the new one, Ian Simmons of Kicking the Seat and I did that very thing. I’ve been a long-time fan of animated one and Ian was a first-timer! Enjoy this new video podcast episode on his YouTube channel!

Media Appearance, Podcast, Social Media, SPECIAL, 2020Don ShanahanMarch 28, 2020AMC River East 21Kicking the SeatComment

MEDIA APPEARANCE: Guest on "PopCulture25YL" Podcast talking March 1995

Since last summer, I’ve been very proud to be a staff writer for 25 Years Later, a rapidly growing entertainment site. One of their specialties (their namesake as you can likely tell) is looking back and examining cultural moments across all mediums that occurred 25 years ago. The site has been dipping its toes into audio content, including a full-fledged podcast. When the call came across the inter-office communication looking for a movie contributor to talk about the 1995 Academy Awards, I was quick to throw my hat in the ring. Thank you to host Conor O’Donnell for having me on and cutting the whole thing together to make us sound great. Here us talk about Forrest Gump, The Shawshank Redemption, Pulp Fiction, and more. Give this new podcast a listen!

25YL, SPECIAL, Social Media, Podcast, Media Appearance, 2020Don ShanahanMarch 26, 2020Comment

GUEST COLUMN: Memorable Romantic Quotes from Movies That You Will Love to Tell Your Date

Forgetting to send a bunch of long-stem red roses on Valentine’s Day to your lover can seem to be a disaster but it can help to make up with a gift and a romantic message. Thanks to the crafted performances and the lilting music, most of us tend to go weak at the knees and also shed a tear when seeing mushy romantic movies. Some of the most romantic lines from well-known movies that you can quote when you want to impress your loved one:

2020, Column, Editorial, GUEST EDITORIAL, Home MediaDon ShanahanMarch 26, 2020Comment

EDITORIAL: After "Parasite and "Get Out": What to Expect of Thrillers

Movies are confidently taking up one of the top spots on the list of most common ways of entertainment. The industry itself is bringing in millions every month. It’s a unique form of art that uses a completely different approach to storytelling than books or video games. And just like any art, it has been evolving throughout its entire life span, discovering new genres and developing new techniques.

2020, Column, Editorial, GUEST EDITORIAL, Home Media, Independent Film, Foreign Film, SPECIALDon ShanahanMarch 23, 2020 Comment

GUEST COLUMN: Top Five Movies the Kids Will Love... and Parents Too!

by Mia Morales

Summertime is always a special time of the year, especially for the kids. Outdoor activities, family get-togethers, vacation adventures - and no homework! It also provides the perfect opportunity to catch up on some terrific movies that may have been overlooked during the busy school year. With that in mind, round up the kids, get plenty of popcorn and snacks and check out these five entertaining films.

2020, Column, Editorial, GUEST EDITORIAL, Home Media, SPECIALDon ShanahanMarch 23, 2020Comment

MOVIE REVIEW: Stargirl

When you take a gander at Grace VanderWaal’s title character in Stargirl, you probably don’t think “unassuming.” The loud outfit seems goudy. The ukulele on her back reeks of ostentatiousness. And, by golly, that rat on her shoulder screams straight-up weird. Miraculously and sweetly, director Julia Hart makes all of this boldness as unassuming as possible, free of arrogance or pretension. The modesty of Jerry Spinelli’s hit source novel is intact and invigorating on this Disney+ original.

MEDIA APPEARANCE: Guest on the "Kicking the Seat" YouTube channel talking movies in the time of quarantine

With all the multiplexes shut down and mainstream releases postponed for the foreseeable future, the #firstworldproblems life of your rank-and-file movie critic has become pretty rough in the time of the COVID-19 quarantine. A question was posed among us of what are we up to stuck in our pajamas with movies to dig through at home. Well, I was unshy about my beautifying bedtime ritual to get on camera in my bedroom attire with Emmanuel Noisette of E-Man’s Movie Reviews for Ian Simmons and his Kicking the Seat YouTube channel to talk movies being consumed during our social distancing time! Enjoy!

Media Appearance, Podcast, Social Media, SPECIAL, 2020Don ShanahanMarch 23, 2020AMC River East 21Kicking the SeatComment

GUEST EDITORIAL: The "Parasite" Oscar Win as a Foreign Film is a Game Changer

by Susan Saurel

The Oscar awards 2020 was different as it recorded a streak-breaking award to a South Korean movie which attracts various commentaries in the world scene when Bong Joon Ho’s Parasite took the big hit after 91 years of a streak of English movie wins. At the 92nd Oscars, Parasite took the world by surprise when it was announced for the Best Pictures award, being the first of foreign film announced as the winner of a highly-rated award from the beginning of the Hollywood Film Academy. Also, it is recorded as the first South Korean movie nomination for a competitive award in the international award category.

COLUMN: 5 Great Movies you need to Watch Before Going to College

Before you join college, it would be nice to get an idea of how it would be like. Not to say that you should live your life according to what you see in movies. Movies are not only a good source of entertainment, but they also teach you a thing or two. There are countless movies out there you will enjoy as a student looking forward to join college. Before you can get to the life of always asking who will solve my homework, why not indulge in a little entertainment. Here are five incredible movies you should check out.

2020, Column, Editorial, GUEST EDITORIAL, Home Media, SPECIALDon ShanahanMarch 10, 2020Comment

MEDIA APPEARANCE: Guest on the "Kicking the Seat" podcast talking "Onward"

Boy, I tell you. You get right three men together with the right movie and hearts overflow. That was Ian Simmons of the Kicking the Seat podcast, David Fowlie of Keeping It Reel, and myself sharing our experiences with Pixar’s Onward. All three of us are dads. All three of us are brothers in our families. The movie’s hearty feels won each of us over and it was a blast, as always, to talk about it on Ian’s recorded airwaves. Enjoy a good film-loving session!

Media Appearance, Podcast, Social Media, SPECIAL, 2020Don ShanahanMarch 8, 2020AMC River East 21Kicking the SeatComment

MOVIE REVIEW: Run This Town

Behind every political monster has a staff of underlings who have stories to tell and permanent stains on their resumes. More often than not, unless they are a featured mouthpiece or the eventual public whistle-blower, we don’t really see these people, even when we know they are there. Across the guarded podiums, pushy microphones, and invasive cameras are also the faceless by-lines of cub reporters trying to break stories and make a name for themselves. They too are dependent on the grinding political machine. Run This Town gives faces and voices to unfortunate minions and nobodies tied to the late and former mayor of Toronto mayor Rob Ford.

2020, 3 STARS, Independent Film, MOVIE REVIEW, Video on DemandDon ShanahanMarch 8, 2020Run This TownComment

MOVIE REVIEW: Onward

In what has become a signature term and evolving metric for this writer, the “Pixar Punch” remains more undefeated than any boxer. It is the animation studio’s “uncanny ability to absolutely destroy our hearts with raw and simple emotionality in perfectly calculated amounts and moments.” On the surface, Onward is a silly quest movie for the tabletop gamer demo that has been cast into a March abyss instead of gleaming in Pixar’s annual mid-June tentpole throne. In actuality, this funnybone-slaying riot gives way to the kind of heart-rending climax that proves the Pixar Punch keeps manifesting itself in more and more unexpected places.

EVERY MOVIE HAS A LESSON

by Don Shanahan

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